An Albuquerque man is now joining the growing list of vigilante victims -- or people who have recovered their own stolen vehicles without police help.

The man said he recovered his daughter’s Honda Civic after it was taken last Thursday.

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“I wanted to do anything that a father could do to get the car back,” the man said.

The man did not want to be identified for fear that the same thieves who took his daughter's car would come back and do the same thing again. Albuquerque police say the car was stolen from the man’s driveway.

The man said he and his family went looking for the car.

“Me, my wife, my brother-in-law all fanned out looking for the vehicle,” the man said.

The man said he found the car in less than an hour, abandoned at a Blake’s Lotaburger on Isleta.

The man said he found it odd to become a detective and solve the case.

“It was a very happy moment that we got the car, because chances of finding it were slim,” the man said.

The man is not alone -- there are two other theft victims who recover stolen property recently. In July, Ana Dean's truck was stolen.

Dean said the truck belonged to her late husband. Frustrated, she went looking for the truck by herself and ended up finding it in a parking lot.

Dean said she blocked in the truck, called 911 and waited for police to show up.

Jason Mulvaney was arrested and charged with receiving or transferring a stolen motor vehicle.

Earlier this week, Elena Galicia said she went looking for her stolen car, which was taken last week, and found it in an apartment complex. Galicia said she had the keys to the car, got in it and drove away.

Albuquerque police said Friday that they don’t encourage people to recover their stolen vehicles on their own.